Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1887-07-25

them out of it. We forget that every aud
itor has 40 much capacity of attention, and
when that is exhausted he is restless
That accident OH the Long Island railroad
some years ago came from the fact that the
brakes We're out OF order, and when they
wanted to stop the train they could not
stop, and hence the casualty was terrific
In all religious discourse We want locomo-
tive power and propulsion. We want at
the same time stout brakes to let down at
the right instant. 1t is a dismal thing
after hearcr has comprehended the whole
subject to hear a man say: Now TO reca-
pitulate, and "a few words by way of
application" and 'once more" and
finally" and now to conclude"
PAUL PREACHED UNTIL MIDNIGHT,
and Eutychns got sound asleep and fell out
OF window and broke his neck. Some
would say: Good for him" l would
rather be sympathetic like Paul and resus-
citate him. That accident is often quoted
now i'll religious circles as a warning
against somnolence in church. II is Just
as much warning to ministers against
prolixity. Eutychus WAS w-,ng in mis-
somnolence, but Paul made . mistake
when he kept on until midnight. He
ought to have stopped at IL o'clock, and
there would have been no accident. II
Paul might have gone on To too great y
length, let all of those who are now preach
ing the gospel remember that there is a
limit TO religious discourse, or ought to he,
and that in our time we have no apostolic
power of miracles.
Napoleon in au address of seven minutes
thrilled his army, aud thrilled Europe.
Christ's sermon on the Mount, the model
sermon, was less than eighteen minutes
long at the ordinary mode of delivery. ltis
not electricity scattered all over the sky
that strikes, but electricity gathered into
thunderbolt and hurled, and it is not
religious truth scattered over. spread out
over vast reach OF time, but religious
truth projected in compact form that flash
es light upon the soul and rives its indif-
ference.
When the religious discourse of the fut-
ure arrives in this land and in the Chris
tian church, the discourse which is TO
arouse the world and startle the nations,
and usher in the kingdom. it will be a
brief discourse. Hear it all theological
students, all We just entering upon relig-
ions work, all We men and women who in
Sabbath schools and other departments are
toiliug for Christ and the salvation of i'm
mortals Breyity! Brevity!
But / remark also, that the religious
discourse of the future of which ! speak
will he
A POPULAR DICOURSE.
There are those in these times who speak
of popular sermon ~ though there must
he something wrong about it, Az these
critics are dull themselves the world gets
the impression that sermon is good in
proportion rs it is stupid. Christ WAS the
most popular preacher the world ever saw,
and considering the small number of the
worlds population had the largest au-
dienccs ever gathered He never preached
anywhere without making "A great sensa-
tion. People rushed out i'll the wilderness
to hear him, reckless of their physical
necessities. So great was their anxiety to
hear Christ that, taking no food with them,
they would have tainted and starved had
not Christ performed miracle and fed
them.
Why did so many people take the truth
ut Christ,s hands? Because they all un-
derstood It, He illustrated his subiectsby
a hen and her chickens, by bushel meas
ure, by handful of salt, by birds flight
and by a lily's aroma. All the peop]e
knew what He meant anG they tlocked 70
Him. And when the religious discourse
of the future appears, it will not be Prince
tOnian, not RochesteTian, not AndOverian,
not Middletonian, but Olivetic-plain,
practical, unique, earnest, comprehensive
OF all the woes, wants, sins, sorrows and
necessities of an auditory.
But when that exhortatiOn or discourse
does come there will lie Thousand gleam-
ing scimetars TO charge on it. There are
in SO many theological seminaries profess
sors telling young men how to preach,
themselves not knowing how, and am
told that il a young man i'll some Of our
theological seminaries says sanything quaint
or thrilling or unique, faculty and students
fly at him and set him right, and straight
en- him ont, and smooth him down, and
chop him of, until he says everything just
~ everybody else says it.
Oh, when
THE FUTURE RELIGIOUS DIsCOURsE
of the Christian church arrives, all the
churches of Christ in our great cities will
he thronged The world wants spiritual
help. All who have buried their dead
want comfort All know themselves to be
mortal and to I've immortal and they want
to hear about the great future. tell you
my friends, If the people Of our great cities
who have had trouble only thought they
could get practical and sympathetic help
in the Christian church, there would not
be a street in New York or Brooklyn, or
Chicago, or Charleston or Philadelphia. or
Boston which would be passable on the
Sabbath day if there were church on it;
for all the people would press to that ssy-
lum of mercy, that great house OF comfort
and consolation.
A mother with dead babe in her arms
came to the God Veda, aud asked TO
have her child restored % life. The God
Veda said to her: "You 20 and get
handful of mustard seed from a house IN
which there has been no sorrow, and in
which there has been no death, and ] will
restore your child to life" So the mother
went out, aud she went from house TO
house, and from home to home looking
for a place where there had been no sOr-
row and where there had beeu no death,
hut she found none. She went back to
the god Veda and said: "My mission is a
failure; you see / haven't brought the
mustard seed; | can't find place where
there has been no sorrow and no death. ~
oh" says the god Veda, understand
your sorrows are no worse than the sorrOws
of Others; we all have our griefs, and all
have our helrt-breaks
Laugh and the world laughs with you.
| Weep and you weep alone.
For the sad old earth must borrow IT, mirth,
But has trouble enough Of it, own.
We hear a great deal Of discussion now
all over the land about
WHY PEOPLE DO NOT GO TO CHURCH.
Some say il is because Christianity il dy
ing out, and because people do not believe
in the truth Of Gods word, and all that
They are false reasons The reason il he
cause our sermons and eIhortations are mo-
interesting, and practical, and helpful
Some one might as well tell the whole
truth on this subject, and 20 ! will tell it
The religious discourse of the future, th'
Gospel sermon TO come forth and shak'
the nations and lift people out Of darkness
| ill ha n ,.onular aermnn inst for the sin